The FMCSA motor carrier census lists 271 household goods registrants whose physical address is in Philadelphia, PA, and 120 of those are classified by FMCSA as interstate operations. BestMovers.info holds no Philadelphia price measurement, only the Pennsylvania range on the Pennsylvania page. Moves that stay inside Pennsylvania are licensed by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement. Center City rowhouses often have narrow hallways and tight stair turns, measure before booking.
Key facts
Local rate, two movers
$95 to $145 per hour
2-bedroom interstate
$2,700 to $6,400
Intrastate regulator
Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement
Interstate licensing
FMCSA USDOT and MC authority
Company profiles shown
4
Pricing data as of
May 2026
Quick answer
We do not yet hold a company profile documented as based in Philadelphia. The companies below are headquartered elsewhere in Pennsylvania, shown separately from movers that publish nationwide service.
Common service neighborhoods: Center City, Fishtown, Northern Liberties, Rittenhouse, South Philly, University City.
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Updated August 2026 Reviewed by Brittany Evans4 companies analyzed
What we hold on Philadelphia moving costs
The only moving cost range BestMovers.info holds for Philadelphia is the Pennsylvania statewide range, and it is published in full on the Pennsylvania page.
How far is Philadelphia from the places people move to most?
Philadelphia to New York City, NY is 95 driving miles, about 2 hours behind the wheel, with a typical transit of 1 to 2 days.
Driving distances and transit windows from the routes dataset; transit days are carrier delivery spreads, not guarantees.
Estimate your Philadelphia moving cost
Get a personalized estimate before any sales call. Editorial estimate based on broader national moving-cost data; BestMovers.info does not maintain a separate Philadelphia transaction-price dataset.
IRS county migration data for filing years 2022 to 2023 records 42,683 returns moving out of Philadelphia County, the county Philadelphia sits in, and 37,340 moving in. A return approximates a household rather than a person. Those filings cover 69,239 individuals leaving and 51,303 arriving.
The counties receiving the most households from Philadelphia County were Montgomery County (5,924 returns), Delaware County (4,471 returns) and Bucks County (3,391 returns).
Arrivals came mainly from Montgomery County (3,939 returns), Delaware County (3,007 returns) and Bucks County (2,178 returns).
These figures come from federal tax return data and cover all household moves, not only those using professional movers.
How many licensed moving companies are registered in Philadelphia?
The FMCSA motor carrier census lists 271 registrants carrying household goods whose physical address is in Philadelphia, and 120 of those are classified by FMCSA as interstate operations. That figure counts companies whose federal registration lists an address in Philadelphia. It is not the number of companies that will serve a move there: a mover registered in a neighbouring city can take the job, and a company registered in Philadelphia may not.
Moving crews quoting Philadelphia work Center City, Fishtown, Northern Liberties, Rittenhouse, South Philly, University City and the surrounding areas.
Who licenses movers operating in Philadelphia
Movers working inside Philadelphia are licensed by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement, whose licence, lookup route and complaint channel are set out on the Pennsylvania page.
George Moving & Storage, Inc. files from Tri County Drive in Freedom, Pennsylvania, active on the federal census with household goods and general freight cargo entries, thirty-two power units, twenty-three drivers, a current MCS-150 filing and docket MC-158885 on the registration. The filed contact email uses the company's own domain and the company's own site publishes the same USDOT and docket numbers, so registrant and brand agree from two directions. The licensing record shows active common carrier authority with property and household goods checked; broker and contract carrier authority are not carried on this docket. A second Pennsylvania registration under a near-identical name carries the same docket number on its census row; it is disclosed separately as a related registration with the relationship recorded as unresolved, and it is not called a predecessor, a former registration, a superseded filing or a sibling. The company is a northAmerican Van Lines agent; the van line holds its own separate registration and no van-line identifier is stored on this record. The Ohio PUCO number and the Pennsylvania PUC number the site publishes are state identifiers and are not recorded as federal registrations. No federal safety rating was located for this registration in the records reviewed. The company states it has operated since 1975.
Why is this company shown here?
George Moving & Storage is headquartered elsewhere in PA. That does not by itself confirm an office in Philadelphia, and no service claim is made here.
Penske rents one-way and local moving trucks. It is a truck rental provider rather than a household goods carrier, so no household goods operating authority applies to it.
Why is this company shown here?
Penske Truck Rental is headquartered elsewhere in PA. That does not by itself confirm an office in Philadelphia, and no service claim is made here.
American Van Lines states first-party that it staffs moves with W2 employees rather than day labour. It requires a deposit to hold a move date, so ask what portion is refundable and by when before you pay it. We publish no BBB grade and hold no complaint dataset, so nothing here rates the company's service.
Why is this company shown here?
American Van Lines publishes broad nationwide moving service on its own site. It is shown separately from companies based in this area and its presence here is not evidence of a local office.
USDOT 614506Pompano Beach, FL2BR est. $2,900–$6,800
One of the oldest moving brands in the US, Bekins runs an agent-affiliate model similar to Allied, with interstate shipments booked under the Bekins registration and performed by affiliated agents.
Why is this company shown here?
Bekins Moving Solutions publishes broad nationwide moving service on its own site. It is shown separately from companies based in this area and its presence here is not evidence of a local office.
USDOT 2256609Indianapolis, IN2BR est. $3,000–$7,000
Which movers are federally registered in Philadelphia?
74 companies with a Philadelphia address on their federal registration hold a granted household goods authority from the FMCSA, and 33 of those identify as a moving business in their legal or trade name. The 30 listed below are the ones registered with the agency longest, ordered by the federal registration date, earliest first. Registration age is the agency's own record. It is not a ranking, it is not a quality judgement and it is not a recommendation.
507 active registrants in Philadelphia tick household goods among their cargo types on the census form, and 329 of those carry any authority row at all. The cargo tick box is filled in by the registrant, so this list uses the agency grant instead, then sets aside general freight, trucking, logistics and courier registrants that hold the authority without presenting themselves as household movers. It is not every mover serving Philadelphia: a company based elsewhere may serve the city, and a registered address is not a service area.
JOSEPH P RILEY AND SONS MOVING COMPANY INC, trading as RILEY AND SONS MOVING & STORAGE
USDOT 85429 · 9800 ASHTON RD, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19114
It filed 15 power units, registered with the FMCSA on June 1, 1974, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC270994, active as common carrier and contract carrier.
USDOT 113645 · 1728 MEADOW STREET, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19124
It filed 2 power units, registered with the FMCSA on June 1, 1974, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC074636, active as common carrier.
USDOT 390115 · 5101 UNRUH AVE, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19135
It filed 13 power units, registered with the FMCSA on April 17, 1990, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC230744, active as common carrier and contract carrier.
It filed 12 power units, registered with the FMCSA on February 14, 1994, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC270660, active as common carrier.
USDOT 958067 · 1241 S 24TH ST #A, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19146
It filed 7 power units, registered with the FMCSA on May 30, 2001, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC409314, active as common carrier.
USDOT 1820213 · 3317 GAUL ST, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19134
It filed 6 power units, registered with the FMCSA on October 13, 2008, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC660647, active as common carrier.
MOVING SERVICES INC, trading as STATE TO STATE MOVERS
USDOT 1833493 · 5213 GRAYS AVENUE UNIT 104, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19143
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on November 28, 2008, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC664790, active as common carrier.
USDOT 2261303 · 8701 TORRESDALE AVE, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19136
It filed 4 power units, registered with the FMCSA on January 8, 2012, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC771755, active as common carrier.
USDOT 2472401 · 1201 N 3RD STREET BOX 284, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19122
It filed 10 power units, registered with the FMCSA on February 3, 2014, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC854978, active as common carrier.
USDOT 2508433 · 1609 N DELAWARE AVE, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19125
It filed 7 power units, registered with the FMCSA on May 21, 2014, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC869818, active as common carrier.
USDOT 2590477 · 1105 GREENWICH STREET, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19147-6305
It filed 3 power units, registered with the FMCSA on March 18, 2015, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC908822, active as common carrier.
MOVING AND STORAGE SF INC, trading as CROSS COUNTRY MOVERS
USDOT 2780116 · 5213 GRAYS AVE UNIT 106, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19143-5816
It filed 16 power units, registered with the FMCSA on July 8, 2015, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC925601, active as common carrier and broker.
USDOT 2857354 · 8 E OREGON AVENUE, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19148
It filed 5 power units, registered with the FMCSA on February 22, 2016, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC114283, active as common carrier.
DEVIN YUSEF LATIMORE, trading as T-A NO STRESS MOVERS
USDOT 3360594 · 1515 MARKET STREET, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19102
It filed 2 power units, registered with the FMCSA on November 21, 2019, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1076104, active as common carrier.
PINEAPPLE DELIVERY SERVICES LLC, trading as PINEAPPLE MOVERS
USDOT 3579435 · 1901 S 9TH ST B01A, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19148
It filed 3 power units, registered with the FMCSA on March 2, 2021, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1208543, active as common carrier.
USDOT 3600670 · 1925 E CLEARFIELD ST, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19134
It filed 2 power units, registered with the FMCSA on March 30, 2021, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1222912, active as common carrier.
USDOT 4146822 · 429 W SEDGWICK ST, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19119
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on October 19, 2023, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1591084, active as common carrier.
USDOT 4341295 · 1811 RHAWN ST APT 110, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19111
It filed 2 power units, registered with the FMCSA on January 3, 2025, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1696269, active as common carrier.
FULL HOUSE LOGISTICS LLC, trading as LET'S GET MOVING PHILADELPHIA
USDOT 4363528 · 325 CHESTNUT ST SUITE 800, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19106
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on February 18, 2025, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1707927, active as common carrier.
MEDITATION MOVERS INC, trading as MEDITATION MOVERS
USDOT 4506839 · 3719 CALUMET ST, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19129
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on December 15, 2025, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1783686, active as common carrier.
USDOT 4517151 · 1761 FOSTER ST APT F2A, PHILADELPHIA, PA 19116
It filed 1 power unit, registered with the FMCSA on January 12, 2026, and holds granted federal household goods authority under docket MC1789210, active as common carrier.
Data as of 2026-08-15 from the FMCSA company census, with authority status as of 2026-08-16. The query behind this list. Information provided by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
Does a federal registration mean a Pennsylvania licence?
No. Federal registration and Pennsylvania authorisation are separate. The list above shows the federal record only, and we have not verified whether any company listed holds a Pennsylvania licence or permit.
A mover operating inside Pennsylvania needs the Certificate of Public Convenience from the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement. Its rates sit in rates on file with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, which movers are required by law to charge.
Pennsylvania publishes its list of carriers holding PUC operating authority on the commission website. The confirmed route to verify a specific Pennsylvania mover is the Public Utility Commission on 717-783-5010.
When is the cheapest time to move in Philadelphia?
Peak demand across Pennsylvania runs May–September. Dates outside that window, and dates away from the last and first few days of any month, are where carriers have spare capacity — and spare capacity is what makes a crew negotiable on price.
We do not publish a percentage saving for moving off-peak in Philadelphia. We hold no month-by-month booking price data for this city, and a discount figure taken from a national average would not describe this market. What we can say is structural, and it holds in every market:
Mid-month beats month-end. Leases and closings cluster at the turn of the month, so that is when crews are fully booked and least flexible.
Mid-week beats the weekend. Saturday is the single most requested moving day; a Tuesday or Wednesday competes with far fewer households for the same trucks.
Off-peak beats May–September. Outside the peak window, carriers are trying to keep crews working rather than turning jobs away.
Flexibility is the lever, not the calendar alone. On an interstate move, giving the carrier a pickup window of several days rather than one fixed date is usually worth more than any single date choice, because it lets them combine your shipment with another on the same lane.
The only reliable way to price a specific date is to put the same date in front of several licensed carriers and compare written estimates. Ask each one what the same move costs two weeks earlier or later — the gap between those two numbers is your real off-peak saving in Philadelphia, measured on your move rather than on an average.
A tip is never part of a written estimate and never part of a binding price. It is discretionary, it is paid per mover rather than per crew, and it is handed to each mover directly at the end of the job rather than to the foreman to divide. Our working guideline scales with hours rather than with the value of the shipment, because that is how moving labour is actually priced:
$10 to $20 per mover for a job of two hours or less.
$20 to $40 per mover for a local move under four hours.
$40 to $60 per mover for a full day, meaning six hours or longer.
These are a BestMovers.info editorial guideline, not a survey result. We hold no tipping survey for Philadelphia and no federal record covers gratuities, so nothing here is a local figure. Read the full tipping guide for stairs, long carries, storage and interstate deliveries, where the crew that loads is not the crew that unloads.
Where can you get free moving boxes in Philadelphia?
Free boxes come from businesses that receive stock in cartons and throw the cartons away, and from households that finished moving last week. The sources are the same in every city, including Philadelphia:
Liquor stores, which have the sturdiest small boxes with dividers
Bookshops, for small boxes rated for weight
Grocery stores, for produce boxes
Offices, for paper boxes with lids
Appliance and furniture retailers, for large flat cartons
Buy Nothing groups and Facebook Marketplace
Craigslist free listings
The U-Haul box exchange
Anyone in your building who has moved in recently
Ask in the morning, when the overnight delivery has just been unpacked and the cartons have not yet been flattened. Skip anything damp, greasy or previously used for produce that leaked. The free boxes guide covers how many you need by home size — those counts are BestMovers.info planning estimates rather than measured figures — and which boxes are worth buying rather than scavenging.
There is no separate cost dataset for Philadelphia. Using the national estimate, a one-bedroom local move is estimated at $420–$930 and a two-bedroom local move at $630–$1,395, while a two-bedroom interstate move from Philadelphia is estimated at $3,000–$7,000. Final price depends on distance, packing services, and date.
When is the busiest moving season in Philadelphia?
Late May through August is the peak window in Philadelphia, with the heaviest volume around month-end weekends. Established companies commonly book out several weeks in advance during this period.
Should I get an in-home estimate or an online quote?
For local moves under 2,500 lb, an online or phone estimate is usually accurate. For interstate moves out of Philadelphia or 3+ bedroom households, request a video survey or in-home estimate so the binding price reflects your actual inventory.
What's the most reliable way to verify a Philadelphia mover?
Check the company's USDOT number on the FMCSA SAFER website, look at their BBB profile and current accreditation, and read recent reviews on Google and Yelp. Avoid any mover unwilling to share a USDOT number on request.
How long does a typical Philadelphia move take?
A 1-bedroom local move in Philadelphia usually takes 3–5 hours with two movers. A 3-bedroom local move runs 7–10 hours, and most movers won't book a same-day move past 4 PM start time.
How we evaluate Philadelphia movers: we verify federal registration and operating authority against FMCSA records, record carrier or broker classification, and note state licensing where the state regulator publishes it. The list above is not ranked and carries no numeric score. Read the full methodology
